1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to manual tools for massaging the surface of the body, and more particularly to such a tool providing a plurality of small wheels arrange on a cylindrical frame for massaging multiple surface areas simultaneously.
2. Description of Related Art
The following art defines the present state of this field:
Breznik, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 396,296 describes an ornamental design for a massager.
Brezrik, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 396,297 describes an ornamental design for a massager.
Burnham, U.S. Pat. No. 5,725,484 describes a manual personal massager comprising of handles to be gripped by the hand of a person. A web network grid is provided. A facility is for attaching opposite ends of the web network grid to the pair of handles. A plurality of massaging members are carried in the web network grid to be applied to a body part of a person and moved back and forth by the movement of the pair of handles.
Morrison, U.S. Pat. No. 3,645,256 describes a massage-exerciser device consisting of a number of resilient discs of frustoconical shape assembled in stacked coaxial relation to form a roller having peripheral ribs and grooves, said discs being reversible whereby to vary the pattern of said ribs and grooves, hard and soft spacers adapted to be inserted selectively between said discs whereby to increase or decrease the effective hardness of the roller, and a clamp for applying a variable axial compressive load to said roller, also to vary the effective hardness thereof, and a frame for carrying a plurality of said rollers rotatably in parallel, spaced-apart relation.
Deuser, U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,135 describes a plurality of non-rotating disc-shaped massaging members, which are fixed, on a flexible shaft held at its ends by a bow. Spherical rolling members between the massaging members space the massaging members apart and limit their depth of depression into the skin.
Chiou, U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,102 describes a portable massaging device which comprises of a cylindrical body in which a power unit is housed and over which a massaging set is fitted. The power unit is composed of a motor, a battery set, a cam and a conducting member. The massaging set is composed of a plurality of fitting members and massaging nipples. The fitting members are provided respectively with a plurality of receiving recesses in which the massaging nipples are held. The fitting members are further provided respectively in the connection ends thereof with a plurality of mortises and tenons, by way of which the fitting members are held together. An end cap is fastened to one end of the cylindrical body for locating the massaging set and for shielding the power unit. A handle is fastened at one end thereof with the end cap and at another end thereof with the conducting member.
Antoskow, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 405,888 describes an ornamental design for a massager.
Tseng, U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,758 describes a handy body massager including a casing defining a substantially U-shaped handle, a barrel supported on rollers in two roller holders between two opposite ends of the handle and having massaging rollers supported on roller racks around the periphery and a fixed connecting block on the inside, a motor fixedly mounted in a motor chamber at one end of the handle, a reducing gear coupled to the motor shaft of the motor and having an output shaft fixedly connected to a connecting block of the barrel and adapted for turning the barrel upon the operation of the motor, a massaging disk coupled to the output shaft of the reduction gear outside the casing and having a plurality of massaging rollers turned about a respective wheel axle at an outer side for massaging.
Chen, U.S. Pat. No. 5,531,665 describes a massaging device which includes a cord, a plurality of massaging balls and a plurality of biasing units strung alternately on the cord, and a connecting unit for joining two ends of the cord together. The biasing units ensure that the massaging balls remain evenly distributed on the cord.
Young, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 404,139 describes an ornamental design for a stimulating massager.
Terashima, U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,338 describes a portable massager which allows self-massaging to be performed in virtually any position. The massager includes at least one pair of pressers mounted at a fixed separation interval onto a rod, which can be separated into two sections, if desired. The pressers may be freely rotatable or non-rotably fixed in position on the rod. The surfaces of the pressers are formed into irregular shapes having indentations and projections. Handles having grips on their ends are either fixed or mounted so as to rotate freely on the rod and project outwardly away from the pressers and toward a respective end of the rod.
The prior art teaches both mechanized and manually operated surface massage devices. Of the manually operated devices; balls, cylindrical rolls and wheels of various shapes, sizes and arrangements are known. Devices are designed for application with one hand or with two and clearly are designed for a wide range of results from vigorous to mild surface massaging and also for deep massage results. However, the prior art does not teach that a surface massaging device may be applied with one hand in a manner whereby multiple, spaced-apart rippled wheel surfaces may be brought into rolling contact with a surface and than drawn along the surface in a back and forth motion to provide a continuous massaging action or, alternately, at the choice of the user, rolled on the surface to bring the rippled wheels into non-rotating contact with the surface. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages as described in the following summary.